Ezekiel was a prophet that worked often in visions and brought much
correction to Israel. Ezekiel 48:35, ".....The Lord is there."
His name is Jehovah Shammah, which means his presence will always be with
you. What Ezekiel is saying here in these four words, this has a
double-meaning. The first meaning is that because of what Israel had been
through, God wanted to bring a peace and comfort to them. God wants you to know
that whatever you are going through, his presence will always be with you. When
Adam walked in the garden with God, who left whom? Where were you this week or
the beginning of the year? Did God leave you or did you leave God? Ponder
that question today and you will see where you have gone off in life. Put
this in your heart, God will never leave you. He will always be there.
That's why these words are so powerful, Jehovah Shammah. God revealed to Ezekiel
what the end times would be like. That's why I say this is a double-reference
scripture. He was showing Ezekiel that there were going to be great times in the
end. But as people walk through life, there will be many afflictions and many
afflictions came upon Israel.

To help us understand what this meaning is, go to Ezekiel 8:4,
"And behold the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the
vision that I saw in the plain." Notice how everybody starts out
when you become born again. The glory of God is there. The glory is upon
your life. But as you walk through life and things begin to happen to you, look
at Verse 6, "He said furthermore unto me, Son of man, seest thou what
they do? Even the great abominations that the house of Israel committeth here,
that I should go far off from my sanctuary? But turn thee yet again and thou
shalt see greater abominations." See we all have our secret things
in life that are deep down within us and nobody can see them. But there is one
that sees what's going on the inside of you today. And this is God speaking to
Ezekiel saying, Ezekiel I see everything that's down on the inside of man. Even
though there are things on the inside of you that you have to deal with, God is
saying to you today, I will be there when you get ready to deal with what you
have down inside and my presence will come back upon you. Some of you may say,
Well I don't sense the presence of God. It could be that there is something way
down deep inside of you that you have to deal with. Verse 7, "And he
brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold a hole in the
wall." God took Ezekiel behind that hole. What he's saying is he
brought Ezekiel into your life today to be like the "fly on the wall".
Have you ever heard that expression? In your house nobody can hear you when
you're arguing and complaining and beating each other up. Nobody knows that.
You're in your concealed little house. But if that little fly on the wall could
only talk and tell your emotions. This is what God is saying to Ezekiel. Ezekiel
you think everything is going good with everybody, but I want to bring you
behind their walls. I want to get on the inside of you and show you what's
really bothering them Ezekiel. He said because of what's in them, I have to
leave them. I love them but I cannot stay with my people. Many times you feel
like God has left you. Well, maybe you have left God because of what's on the
inside of you. Your true being on the inside of you. Go to Ezekiel 10:18.
We're laying a foundation as to why the glory of God sometimes has to leave you.
"Then the glory of the Lord departed from off the threshold of the
house and stood over the cherubims." God said, I have to leave
them. Ezekiel was like Moses trying to stand in the gap. Now you can see why Ezekiel
48:35 has another meaning. After everything that Israel had been through
and everything you have been through, the last thing you should know today is
that the Lord is there. Jehovah Shammah. He will be with you as
soon as you are willing to correct what's on the inside of you. When you begin
to lay that on the altar, then the Holy Spirit will come down and burn it up and
take it away. But you have to lay it on the altar for him.

You see God's presence has always wanted to be with man. From the very
beginning of time with Adam, it says that God walked with Adam. But what
happened? Adam sinned. God had to leave. Then you go on in the bible where God
walked with Enoch. The relationship between God and Enoch was so great that he
took Enoch to heaven with him. He was so pure. Then he found Abraham, a man that
was willing to release everything on the inside of him. Willing to go wherever
God wanted him to go. He made a covenant with him. Then after Abraham he found
Moses who was man that was chosen to lead his people out of bondage. Moses was
God's friend. After Moses it was Joshua. He went with Joshua and did great
things through him. God's presence was always with them. What happened with
Moses was that the people said they felt good with the presence of God. One
thing about the Jews, as much as they sinned, they always came back to God
because they knew and wanted his presence back just as before. That was one
thing with the Israelites. Yes, they sinned, they blew it; they did so many
things wrong but there was nothing like the presence of God. They knew that God
would receive them back. When they were out in the wilderness they had to dwell
in tents. God said to Moses, if my people have to dwell in tents, build me a
tent and I will dwell with my people in the wilderness. The people knew every
night when they went to bed; they saw the cloud of fire coming down. That was
the presence of God amongst His people. They knew God was there. God is not
going to give you a pillar of fire by night or a cloud by day. Today the Holy
Spirit dwells on the inside of you. That is your pillar of fire and your cloud.
But some of you have lost it because of sin in your life and you want the glory
back. You're no different than the Israelites. You want the presence of God as
never before.

So when they were in the wilderness God said he would dwell with them. But
then all of a sudden they went into the land of Canaan and no longer did they
live in tents. They started to build houses. And God said to Solomon, my people
live in houses, build me a house. And the people wanted the temple of God.
Solomon built a temple for God that there was nothing on this earth like it. The
people had a place to go where they knew they could meet. But what happened?
They went off track again. They went out into the wilderness and started to do
things their own way. Babylon captivity comes along and takes all the people
into captivity for seventy years, which brought great discouragement to the
people. How would you like to go 70 years without God in your life? What must it
be like? So he sends Ezekiel to them to say God wants to give you hope. Maybe
there are people here today who have been discouraged and depressed and you need
hope. You need a hope from the Word of God. Ezekiel brought that hope to those
people. After 70 years of being in captivity, he brought them hope. He says,
I'll bring you out. I will bring you back to Jerusalem and I will let you build
another temple. And that gave the people a spontaneous uplifting that they
didn't have for all those years. Then God brought the people back to Jerusalem
and they started to build the temple. Some of the older people said it wasn't as
beautiful as Solomon's temple. But the young people said it was a temple that
they never had. That is why you are seeing young people today come to the Lord
as never before because they are beginning to realize they need something right
now not like in the past. They need something as never before. They need a
temple. This is what God is saying today. People need somebody in their temple.

After the temple was built they were brought into bondage again. They had to
leave that temple. Then there were 400 silent years. God wasn't around. Then
somewhere between 15BC and 20BC a man named Herod came on the scene. He said he
would build a temple. And he built this beautiful temple which was equivalent to
Solomon's temple but God was not in it. God was not there. Because it was man.
When you start to build things yourself and or in your own strengths you begin
to forget the Spirit of God. Whether it's your business, marriage, children, or
your family, whatever it is, when you start to do it and say, I will do things
this way and I will make the provisions for my family, that is when you will
fail. God is saying, I will make the provisions for your family. Do it
through ME. Come into the temple and pray and I will see that you have
everything. But man wants to do it himself. He wants to climb the corporate
ladder. He wants to build his business. The pride and everything that goes with
it is what is motivating you. This temple took 46 years to build. Now that shows
you just how big this temple was. That's a long time to build but God was not in
it. Look what happened?

God is tired of man-made temples. God is tired of you doing things your way.
I'll come when I want. No! It's not going to be that way any more. God wants you
to start doing things his way. Look what happened in John 2. This
is Jesus just going into the ministry. And the first miracle that Jesus did is
to turn water into wine. Jesus did not start out his ministry real nice and calm
and peaceful. Jesus waited until everybody was there and watching him. This just
wasn't a normal day. This was the feast of the Passover. People from all over
the world came to this feast. Watch what happened. Verse 13, "And the
Jews' Passover was at hand and Jesus went up to Jerusalem." Verse 14,
"And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the
changers of money sitting." This was Herod's temple. They were
cheating and robbing the people. These Pharisees, the leaders, were making money
in this temple. Merchandise was being sold as never before. Verse 15,
"And when he (Jesus) had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all
out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers'
money, and overthrew the tables." Do quiet, peaceful people turn
over tables? No. This was what was in Jesus. Did Jesus lose it? Yes, I would say
he did. Verse 16, "And said unto them that sold doves, take these
things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise."
As beautiful as that temple was, 46 years in building, Jesus threw everything
out. Verse 17, "And his disciples remembered that it was written, The
zeal of thine house hath eaten me up." That was the zeal that God
had; he wanted his presence to come back into that house after all those years.
Verse 18, "Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou
unto us, seeing that thou doest these things?" Show us what you are
doing? What right do you have to come in here and do this? This isn't your
temple. This is the response Jesus gave them in Verse 19, "Jesus
answered and said unto them, destroy this temple and in three days I will raise
it up." Verse 20, "Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this
temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days?" They
missed the whole spiritual point of this. Jesus was talking about how long it
would take from the crucifixion to the resurrection. And they totally missed it.
Verse 21, "But he spoke of the temple of his body." Verse 22,
"When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that
he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which
Jesus had said." From this point on God said there's not going to
be anymore man-made temples. All the past man-made temples brought the people to
the temples but also brought all kinds of problems. Whenever that period of time
was over, they ruined the temples. On the day that Jesus was going into Israel,
when he was up on the mount, Palm Sunday we call it, he looked down and wept
because he saw that temple. Within 35 years that temple again would be totally
destroyed and removed and the people would have nothing. Now where is God going
to go? There is no more temple.

Turn to 2 Corinthians 5:19, "To wit, that God was in Christ,
reconciling the world unto himself, not inputting their trespasses unto them;
and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation." Jesus had
become the temple of God. And from that time you can go through history and you
will not find another temple. But what happened after Jesus died? He sent the
Holy Spirit. Did the spirit of God leave the temple? No. The day that you became
born again, you became the temple. 1 Corinthians 3:16, "Know ye not
that ye are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" Why
do you think you have holy hands today? Because the Spirit of God is in you. You
are the temple that God always wanted to work through. The anointed one and his
anointing abides in each one of us. We have holy hands. That's why we can lay
hands on each other. 2 Corinthians 6:16, "And what agreement hath the
temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath
said, I will dwell in them and walk in them; and I will be their God and they
shall be my people." You are the temple of God. What happens now
when you die? Where is that spirit going to go? Are you still going to be that
temple? 2 Corinthians 5:1, "For we know that if our earthly house of
this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made
with hands, eternal in the heavens." That is the resurrection. When
we leave this earth on that day we will receive a house not made with hands. God
is going to redo us. Everything that we have now will be completely gone.
Jehovah Shammah will always be with you.

Revelation 21, the presence of God is always with you. He's not going to
leave you. This is the other meaning of what Ezekiel had said. Verse 1,
"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first
earth were passed away; and there was no more sea." Verse 2, "And I
John saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." Verse 3, "And I heard a
great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and
he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be
with them, and be their God." You don't have to go to a psychic
today to find out about your future. You want to know your future? What future
you have? It is a future that will be filled with the presence of God. You might
be saying, that's good but what about now, what I'm going through? Jehovah
Shammah is still here with you today. Just because things aren't going right in
your life, that doesn't mean Jehovah Shammah is not there. Jehovah Shammah will
always be with you. He was in Jerusalem. He was with Abraham, David. No matter
where you look in history, he is always there.

I want to go over a few things that Jesus is for His presence is here andHhe
wants to do a work in your life today.

Jehovah Shammah is always with you. Don't ever forget that. The Lord is
there. The presence of the Lord is always with you. He is with you when you get
up. He's with you during the day. He'll be with you when you go to sleep. In the
best day of your life he's with you. In the worst day of your life, he'll be
with you. He's with you in trouble. He's with you in darkness. He's with you in
the wilderness. He's with you in every trial, temptation and valley that you
should walk through. Whether you're discouraged or depressed and there looks
like there is no time of hope, Jehovah Shammah is with you. He was with Daniel
in the lion's den and he will be with you, whatever affliction you go through.
He was with the three boys in the firey furnace. If you think you have been
walking through the firey furnace, look up because Jehovah Shammah is right next
to you. He's with you in the boat. When things don't look well and the temptest,
the storms of life come along, Jesus is in the boat with you. He said, I'll
never leave you nor forsake you. He said, My name is Emanuel, God is with you.
He is the lamb who was slain. He is your deliverer. He is your friend. He is
your Messiah. He is the Son of the living God and his name is Jesus. He is the
same yesterday, today and forever. He is the Savior. He is the healer. He is the
baptizer. He is the bright and the morning star. He is the lion of the tribe of
Judah. He is the Lilly of the Valley. He is the sweet Rose of Sharon. He is
Alpha and Omega. God at the Beginning and the End for you. He is the One
who was, the One who is, the One who is coming. He is the beginning and the end.
He is the shelter from every storm you have in life. He is the father of the
orphan. He is the husband to the bride. He is the physician to the sick. He is
the banker to the poor. He is the compass to the traveler. He is the one that
King Herod could not destroy. He was the one that the devil could not entice. He
is the one that death could not hold. He is the redeemer of all mankind. He is
the one who spoke and the blind see, the lame walk, the deaf hear and the dumb
talk. He was like no other man whoever walked on the face of this earth. He was
God and man and his name is Jesus. And Jehovah Shammah is with you till the end
of time. So whatever you're going through today, look up and know that He is
there. He is nigh unto you today. Regardless of what things look like in your
life today, Jehovah Shammah will never leave you. He said I will never forsake
you. I will be with you through the worst conditions of life. He wants to brand
this into your spirit today. He wants to put this into your heart. Regardless of
what you have not received from Him. Maybe you still need a healing. Maybe you
still have financial problems. Maybe things are still not working out for you.
But that does not erase the fact that Jehovah Shammah is still with you. He is
your Lord. He is your God. He is your Savior.

SEVEN REDEMPTIVE NAMES OF GOD

JEHOVAH SHALOM - THE LORD OUR PEACE

Today we are going to talk about peace
- Jehovah Shalom. He is our peace
and he wants peace to flow into
people's lives today because he knows there is unrest in many of His people. He
wants to take that unrest out of you. He wants you to have peace. If you will
allow this gift to work, it will allow remove anything that is in you, that's
unsettled.

Isaiah 57:21, "There is no peace, saith my God to the wicked."
There are wicked people in this earth today in the unsaved world. Sin always
destroys serenity and prevents peace. Sin will give you no peace. If you fall
into sin you will have no peace. Romans 5:1, "Therefore being
justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." In
Acts chapter 9 we are going to look at a man who had no peace in his life. But
as we continue on we will see what happens in this man's life. Acts
9:1, "And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the
disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest." Saul, who
later became Paul, was one of the most educated men in the world. He had
everything. He had money. He was a zealot. There wasn't anything he didn't have.
He also studied the Covenant of God. He was very smart. He believed in the law
but he also persecuted Christians and that's what this verse is about because
there was no peace in him. But look what happens in Verse 4, what happened to
him on the road to Damascus. "And he fell to the earth and heard a voice
saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" In other words,
every time a Christian is persecuted, it persecutes Jesus. It holds true today.
All the people in Sudan that are being persecuted, every time they are being
tormented and tortured, Jesus is being persecuted. Verse 5, "And he said,
Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest; it is
hard for thee to kick against the pricks." Saul, you have to stop kicking;
it's not going to do any good. Many of us sometimes in life kick against the
pricks. You know you are doing things you shouldn't be doing and you're kicking
against the pricks. God is saying today that you can't kick against the pricks
any longer and receive what you want. You will never get anything in life if you
kick against the pricks. You kick against the pricks every time you go to a bar.
You kick against the pricks every time you don't forgive someone for what they
did to you. Then you ask God, I see all my neighbors and they are getting
blessed so much. You are kicking against the pricks. God told Saul and he's
telling you today. There are people in here that are kicking against the pricks.
You're wondering why your life is not right and why you don't have more things
in your life. Why are things not happening for you? Because you're kicking
against the pricks. So let him change you today.

Turn to Isaiah and we will find out why you
can have peace today. Isaiah chapter 53, a very familiar passage of
scripture. We've been touching on this quite a bit toward the end of this year. Isaiah
53:5, "But he was wounded for our transgressions (rebellion you were in
before you receive Jesus), he was bruised for our iniquities (sin nature you had
in you), the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are
healed." Jesus was chastised in our stead for that you wouldn't
have to be chastised. He took the chastisement upon him. He did that so you can
be reconciled to God and begin to get the covenant blessings upon your life.
Jesus said he would take the correction upon him so people could walk I n the
covenant blessings he wants to give us. Everything that was necessary for you to
be reconciled, Jesus took upon himself. Every bit of correction in life,
everything that was necessary to get you so you could be blessed, Jesus took it
upon Himself. That's what He did for us.

Peace will bring you health. How
many of you know before you were born again were bound with so many things? I'm
not saying peace is going to bring you total health because we all have things
that go wrong with us in life. But overall when you were in the world, sickness
was upon you; but when you received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, not
only were you saved but He healed you. And you can begin to receive peace in
your life once you become born again. But you have to receive it. Isaiah
9:6, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the
government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called Wonderful,
Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."Jesus is the Prince of Peace. We
also know and even the doctors will tell you this, if there is stress, pain, and
pressure in your life, which helps to cause sickness. It's not the main reason
for it, but you won't be healthy if you have all these things on the inside of
you. Unforgiveness can give you ulcers. We have to learn how to forgive. This is
what doctors say. Why do you think when you go into doctors offices,
psychiatrists offices, usually you will see pictures of snow capped mountains,
beautiful oceans, waves, brooks going through woods. They want to bring peace to
you. They know that if they can bring a little of peace to you, it will help
them with medication and begin to see you be set healed and free.

Another thing peace is, go to Ephesians chapter 2; peace is the result of a
relationship. Ephesians 2:14, "For he is our
peace...." The moment you receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and
Savior he came into you spirit and the fruit of his spirit was deposited into
you. The peace has to be developed and God will do that for you. Once you have
that relationship with Jesus then you have that peace on the inside of you. Now
say the state of your marriage or financial situation is not good today, or our
business. That is no reason for you not to walk in peace. You see, peace is a
divine source. It comes from God. Now I know when you are going through
problems, it's easy to lose it. But you can still have that peace on the inside.
The fruit of the spirit is a divine source given from God to you the moment you
receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. It came into your heart. What we
have to learn is how to develop it. Peace cannot be taught to you. It has to be
developed. And that's the purpose of the Holy Spirit, to help us develop peace
in our life. Once he begins to develop that peace, then we can have it
regardless of what our marriage is like, regardless of what our business is
doing right now, you can still have peace on the inside of you.

Jesus said in Mark chapter 4 talking about the men out in the water. If you
will notice in the bible, everytime Jesus approached someone he said, peace.
You today can have peace in the midst of your storm. If you have unrest
in your life, Jesus will come and get in your boat today, it doesn't matter what
you are going through. You can be going to divorce court tomorrow, but go and
have peace. If
you will cry out to Jesus he will get in your boat today. Some of you are going
through many things and there is only one answer, that's to let the Prince
of Peace get into your boat. And when He does, He will begin to
work.

Another thing peace is, peace
is universal. Ephesians 2:13, "But now in Christ Jesus ye who
sometimes were afar off are made nigh by the blood of Christ." These are
the gentiles. Verse 14, "For he is our peace, who hath made both one (Jew
and Gentile), and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between
us." That was the wall of partition between the Holy of Holies.
When Jesus said it was finished that was broken down, God came out of the Holy
of Holies and now He comes within us. There is not a wall between the Holy of
Holies and the holy place. But there are many walls in our lives as Christians
and those walls can be removed through the Prince
of Peace.Verse 15, " Having abolished in his
flesh the enmity (hostility), even the law of commandments contained in
ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace."
He brings that peace
in everything that He does. Bring men together. Verse 16, "And
that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the
enmity thereby." Verse 17, "And came and preached peace to you
(Gentile) which were afar off, and to them that were nigh."
Peace, peace, peace....this is what this season is about,
peace. It's inherent in His name. It's inherited. You
inherited something when you received Jesus in your heart. You
inherited peace. This is what He wants you to see today. Verse
19, "Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but
fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God." Now
we said that nobody can teach you about peace,
but the Holy Spirit will develop the peace
on the inside of you.

Colossians 3:15, "And let the peace
of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body,
and be ye thankful." Let the peace of God control your heart.
You can't be ruled by turmoil and confusion. Jesus is not the author of
confusion. If you are sitting here today and you have confusion in your life,
you are being ruled by the devil. You are receiving the devil's thoughts.
Peace is a beautiful thing. It's like a safety valve on the inside of
you. Sometimes you might be disturbed and that's OK but you know who's going to
reveal it? Peace. You
see how peace can
work for you? Some of you have no peace
and you're not listening to that valve on the inside of you. You could say it's
a voice. Sometimes when you are in turmoil with the problems of life, you cannot
hear the voice of God. So what does he do? He backs it up with something. It's a
valve on the inside of you. Maybe you're not hearing the voice of God today, but
you know what's going on in your life. Something isn't right because you don't
have the peace. You're disturbed on the inside. You're confused on the inside
because the peace is not there. Peace
is a blessing from God. It's a valve that will reveal
something on the inside of you. When something is not right in your life, the
peace detector is working. You've gone off the track somewhere in life. That's
why you have to get the peace back in you today so you will be able to get back
on track. That's why he says in Colossians 3:15, "Let
the peace of God rule in your hearts..."

Another thing peace can do, peace
is your guide. Not only a detector and valve, it can be your
guide. When you go to different countries you need guides. Why? Because they
know where to go. That's what peace is. Philippians 4:7, "And the
peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds
through Christ Jesus." He will keep your heart and he will keep
your mind. Peace is not a guard watching over you. One scripture says, the peace
of God shall be a garrison for your heart and mind. Isn't that beautiful? The
peace of God can come into you today and regardless of what you are going
through in life, he will develop you in this peace. He will completely
surround you with this peace. People today need this. What this country
has just gone through. It's very hard to have peace because of what you see.
You're in an atmosphere of turmoil and unrest. But God is saying here that peace
will keep your heart and keep you through all these things. People were
getting so upset over these elections. It was eating at them and getting into
their lives. Why? Because these people had no peace. Some of you don't have
peace. You appear on the outside to have peace but deep down inside you are
troubled and you have no peace. On the outside you look great. That's why you
have to let peace develop you now. That's what God wants to do today. He wants
to let you have that total peace
on the inside of you. And he will if you will open yourself up to him.

2 Corinthians 4:8-9, "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed;
we are perplexed, but not in despair. Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down,
but not destroyed." Could this possibly be the same man that we first read
about? That was threatening all the Christians? This was after he had received
Jesus as his Lord and Savior. A man with peace could write over half of the New
Testament. Some of you are very perplexed today and the only way you will get
that guidance is when God allows that peace, his peace, to flow through you to
make that decision. Never make a decision when you are upset. Never, never! If
you have to think twice about something, don't make the decision. If some of you
are here ready to make a decision today, don't do it until you have a complete
peace on the inside of you. All the perplexities of life must go. You have to
have complete peace; it's the safety valve on the inside of you. If this changed
Paul, it will change you. He's our example we've been looking at.
"Persecuted but not forsaken, cast down but not destroyed." Wherever
you are today, get back up on your feet. Say, God I need that peace to go
through. I know there are going to be problems in life. But you can let peace be
developed in your life and begin to let the Prince of Peace begin to rule and
reign in your heart. There is a big difference between Saul and Paul and Jesus
can change your name today. Maybe you're a Saul. Maybe you're going through all
kinds of things in life but the peace of God will come in and change you. But
you have to let him do it. Church, if we can just begin to see what peace will
do for us. That's all God wants to do. If he can get you into a place of peace,
he can begin to operate on you. He can give you the direction that you've been
seeking.

Isaiah 26:3 is the answer to all things. I just want to mention again, peace
is a gift from God but it must be applied to your life to be effective. Today,
you can make a decision. Today, will you apply peace to your life? We all have
electricity in our houses but unless you go over to the wall and flip the
switch, you will stay in darkness. You've got to flip the switch and then the
electricity goes on. You must apply peace into your life for it to be effective
and the answer is prayer. It's the switch that will make peace flow from God
today into your being. Because when you get peace you will begin to think more
clearly and make better decisions. You cannot think if there is no peace in your
life. God's not the author of confusion. Another statement is, prayerlessness
short-circuits the flow from God. The more prayer you put in your life, the more
peace you will have in your life. The more you pray, the more peace you will
have. Intercessors will have, I believe, more peace then most other people in
the congregation. You say, Well I know this intercessor and there is no peace in
her. You can say that and that could be true. But what I am saying is, the more
prayer you have in your life, the more peace you will have in your life. It's a
barometer and it will work everytime. You need prayer. Another thing, we have to
stop focuses our eyes on ourselves and you have to fasten our eyes on Jesus. The
moment you do that you will begin to forget your problems. The problems will
still be there, disturbances will still be there, but there is something when
you take your eyes off yourself and fasten them on Jesus, peace will come into
your heart. This is a refrigerator scripture, Isaiah 26:3, "Thou
wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee; because he
trusteth in thee." Keep this scripture all over. The more time
you focus on Jesus and the more private time you have with him, the less anxiety
you will have in your life. The church has something that the world does not
have. The world will pay anything for peace. It's proven. They are breaking all
kinds of records selling alcohol and drugs. Every year, there is more and more.
Why? People are looking for peace. If there is any one thing that people want
today, it's peace. He is the Prince of Peace.

The other thing is peace is a person, so would you let that person begin to
rule and reign in your heart. Isaiah 9:6, we said at the beginning, he
is the Prince of Peace.

COMPASSION OF JESUS

JEHOVAH RAPHA - "I AM THE LORD THY PHYSICIAN"

We're going to be talking about the seven redemptive names of God. The reason
we're spending so much time on this is because every need that you have is in
that redemptive name of Jehovah, the name of God. All you have to do is examine
the need or needs you have, and begin to state that need and confess over your
life the word of God and then you will be able to understand why He can meet
every need. This morning we are going to be talking about Jehovah Rapha. We
talked about Jehovah Tsidkenu, that he is our righteousness. The only way that
you will have peace in your life is that Jesus Christ has to become Jehovah
Tsidkenu to you or become your righteousness, and you have to become in
right-standing with God. For the offering this morning, we talked about Jehovah
Jireh, He is our provider. Whatever you need in life, He is our provider. The
provisions have already been made through the Abrahamic covenant. That is why
Jesus can provide for you everything that you need.

Psalm 145:8, "The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to
anger, and of
great mercy". When you see the word "gracious" that's
God's grace. God's willingness to use His ability on your behalf. So
what is it that you want today? He's inclined to show you favor when you have
grace. What do you need favor for? We are going to look at the word "compassion"
today. We are going to see God's compassion work in a mighty way. Our society is
so mixed up today, but we have a God that has compassion and mercy. That's why
you can come back to God and know that He will receive you. That love is so
great that we can't fathom it. It's something that we can't understand, how deep
can His love be for each one of us. For the things that we have done in life,
and He says, I will forgive you. That's compassion and mercy. Verse 9,
"The Lord is good to all; and his tender mercies are over all his
works." God is no respecter of persons. No matter how bad you
have been or how much you have messed up in life, He is no respecter of persons.
He'll let his compassion shine on you and he'll bring forth his mercy on you and
his love. You don't understand it but God says, I love you. God is tender and He
has mercy for everyone here. With God all things are possible. Man says, I know
God is able to do it but will He do it for me? The devil knows God is able too
and that's when he shutters. He shutters when you find out that God is willing
to do it for you. Every one of us here has a different situation in life.
You know God is able to do it but the answer hasn't shown up yet. So what
happens to you is you say, I know He's able but is He willing to do it for me?
This is what you have to ask yourself today. Is He willing to do it for me?
I know He's done it for the neighbor down the street. I know He's done it for
someone on Benny Hinn's program, but will He do it for me? This is what we want
you to settle in your mind today. That He is not only able but He is willing
to take you out of the situation that you are in and bring you into another
place. If you're not sound on this one point, it's going to be very hard for
God to do anything in your life. His compassion is there, but your little bit of
doubt is going to stop His compassion today from moving in your life. It's going
to stop His mercy from moving in your life. This is what He's talking about.
Compassion and mercy are the same from the Old Testament to the New Testament.
In the New Testament you hear people say, Oh have mercy on me Lord, thinking
about a sinner. But we're talking about mercy not just for the sinner but for
the one who is saved. You are saved and you need as much mercy as the sinner
needs in your thinking. We have to call out upon the Lord for that type of
mercy. You see, God's character is love, compassion, and mercy. Micah
7:18 says, ".....because he delighteth in mercy." That
means, whatever you need today He is going to delight in it to give it to you. 2
Chronicles 16:9, "For the yes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the
whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect
toward him....." That's a promise. Begin to meditate and study
this. His eyes are running to and fro throughout this earth to bring to you
whatever you need. And God says He is no respecter of persons.

This morning we are going to look at examples throughout the bible to build
you up today and know that you know that His compassion and mercy will work for
you. Mark 1:40, "And there came a leper to him
beseeching him and kneeling down to him and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou
canst make me clean." Would you say that this man is in a
little bit of doubt? This is where we are. We're getting back to this, I know
He's able but will he do it for me? If thou wilt, I know you can do it Jesus but
will you do it for me? Verse 41, "And Jesus, moved with
compassion, put forth his hand and touched him and saith unto him, I will; be
thou clean." Jesus was moved with compassion, with love and
with his mercy and the leper saw it. But do you know that leper was not ready to
receive his healing yet? He saw Jesus but here is where the leper was ready to
receive his healing. Jesus put forth his hand. When you see Jesus do something,
then you put yourself in a position to expect it. This leper was not in a
position to accept the healing until he saw Jesus reach forth and touch him. And
when he reached forth and touched him, compassion flowed from the hands of
Jesus. Notice this, He didn't tell him to go jump in the water, He didn't spit,
or make mud and put it on his body. All that was said, He had compassion and
that is what we need today, His compassion. Now Jesus put forth His hand and He
touched him. Now the leper expected something to happen. That's why every
Saturday night we pray, Oh God let the people come expecting with no doubt.
".... I will; be thou clean." It's that simple; no great
sermon, just five little words. No great deliverance, no screaming, no
hollering. Look at the results. Everything that God does for you is done through
His compassion. Verse 42, "As soon as he had spoken, immediately
the leprosy departed from him and he was cleansed." How would
you like to get healed like that, immediately? Verse 43, "And he
straitly charged him and forthwith sent him away." Verse 44, "And
saith unto him, See thou say nothing to any man; but go thy way, show thyself to
the priest, and offer for thy cleansing those things which Moses commanded, for
a testimony unto them." You see just because you are reading in
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, this is Old Testament. They were just put in the
New Testament but this is all Old Testament. If it were New Testament, the leper
would not have to go back to the priest. Jesus sent him back to the priest. If
this were New Testament, Jesus was the priest.

Let's look at another story and see how Jesus' compassion works on a
demoniac. Mark 5:4, "Because that he had been often
bound with fetters and chains and the chains had been plucked asunder by him and
the fetters broken in pieces; neither could any man tame him."
This was a mountain man over in Gadarenes. He was roaming around the mountains
and the people feared this man. They feared him because of all the demons in
this man. Verse 7, "And cried with a loud voice, and said, What
have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by
God that thou torment me not." The demons in the man recognized
Jesus. People in the world recognize you because they see Jesus in you. Many
people don't want to be around you because there is something in you they don't
like. Now if they are totally possessed as this man was, then they will run to
you because they know you have the answer. That's why he ran to Jesus, he knew
he had the answer. Verse 8, "For he said unto him, Come out of the
man, thou unclean spirit." Jesus didn't shake hands with him,
didn't talk with him. "Come out of the man". That's it. Now
notice the demon didn't come out. The demon stayed inside this man. So Jesus had
a conversation. Verse 9, "And he asked him, What is thy name? And
he answered, saying, My name is Legion; for we are many." Verse 10,
"And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the
country." When you deliver people and get these demons out of
them, you have to send them some place. And demons do not want to be sent into
the dry places. They would much rather go into animals. Verse 11,
"Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine
feeding." Verse 12, "And all the devils besought him saying, Send us
into the swine that we may enter into them." Jesus told them
to go and these pigs run down into the water and they drowned and all the demons
were gone. After the pigs ran into the water what do you think the shepherds
were doing? They ran back to town and said, you ought to see what happened in
Gadarenes. So all the people came out. News travels fast in the city. Verse
15, "And they come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the devil,
and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind; and they were
afraid." They wanted to see this man to see if it was really
true. Remember the man was naked and now he was clothed. Demon possessed people
don't like to have clothes on. He was sitting down; he put clothes on him and he
was in his right mind. He could think straight and that was a major thing.
Because of that, most of the people who came up from the city were afraid. You
think they would rejoice because that man was set free. Verse 16,
"And they that saw it told them how it befell to him that was possessed
with the devil, and also concerning the swine." Verse 17, "And they
began to pray him to depart out of their coasts." They wanted
Jesus to leave their city. Keep this in mind. This was the statement that came
out of the people. Sometimes when Jesus gets so close to the thing that's in
you, you don't want him around. People that are bound up, they don't want Jesus
around if they're having a good time. Verse 18, "And when he was
come into the ship, he that had been possessed with the devil prayed him that he
might be with him." He wanted to go with Jesus and wanted Jesus to teach
him the ministry. Verse 19, "Howbeit Jesus suffered him not but saith unto
him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done
for thee, and hath had compassion on thee." When you deliver
people it is the compassion of God. Do you think God and Jesus wants to see you
sitting with all these tormenting demons on the inside of you? No. It's
compassion. The compassion of God will drive out what's inside you. Jesus wants
to see you free. This is an amazing story. Verse 20, "And he
departed and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for
him; and all men did marvel." Jesus wanted this man to stay and
go throughout the area and tell people what He did for him. Sometimes we have to
go to years of bible school and this is good. But there are certain people God
doesn't want to go to a bible school because He wants them to go out and
immediately publish what God has done for them. We are coming into the times now
that there is not enough time to go back to four years of bible school or two
years of bible school. We will always have bible school but you will notice that
the bible schools are being cut down to a year and some to six months. We need
bible colleges for two and four years; we will always need that. But there are
certain people that God wants you to go the way you are. Betty Baxter was one.
After thirteen or fourteen years, the compassion of Jesus Christ, the glory of
God flowed into that young girl and she was totally healed. From the point on,
God prepared her and sent her out. She went all over the country. Why? Because
it was such a miracle. Verse 20, "And he departed and began to
publish in Decapolis...." Decapolis is a region of ten cities.
Now you can understand what Jesus did here. Jesus has a plan for your life. Now
maybe after this man had done what Jesus said, he went to school or whatever
they had in those days. But Jesus had a plan for him first. If you think God's
going to use plan one, two, three for you, you're mistaken. You are different
than the person sitting next to you. You are unique and God is going to use your
character and your position to minister to people that nobody else could. If you
think you have to do all these steps in order to get ready to do Jesus' work,
that's wrong. As soon as you are born again, if you're ready, Jesus is going to
use you. Just like that. I tell you that from experience. I was in business one
day and I was preaching the gospel two year's later. And I had no idea and did
not want to do it. I argued with God right up to the point where he brought us
into the ministry. Then he prepared us for that. Everyone is different. Are you
willing today to accept the call that God has placed on your life? That's the
difference. Are you ready? You have accepted the call but now are you
willing to be separated to what he want you to do. Or are you going to sit back
and be comfortable and when you get in a position and have money in the bank,
then say you will step out for Jesus. That's what you have to ask yourself
today. That's what Jesus told the man. You go just the way you are. Wherever the
man went they couldn't believe his testimony.

Mark 7:31, "And again departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, he
came unto the Sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis."
Jesus came back to Decapolis.
Verse 32, "And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an
impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him." If
you go on reading, they all came to be healed. Why? Because of one man and he
knew that Jesus had compassion on him. Notice there was no great deliverance
session. It was the compassion of Jesus Christ that the demon left. Then when
the demoniac went out to preach, he preached the compassion of Jesus Christ and
they all came. Matthew 4:25, "And there followed him great
multitudes of people from Galilee and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and
from Judaea and from beyond Jordan." You can do this in your
city. Go and tell people what Jesus has done for you. You may think that you're
testimony is not that great. It doesn't matter how great or where you were.
You're testimony is that Jesus Christ saved you from being a sinner and you as a
sinner know everything that you did and you as a sinner can relate to people. He
will use you the same way.

I want to keep this word "compassion" in front of you this morning. Matthew 14:13 John the Baptist had just been killed.
"When Jesus heard of it, he departed thence by ship into a desert place
apart; and when the people had heard thereof, they followed him on foot out of
the cities." Verse 14, "And Jesus went forth and saw a great multitude
and was moved with compassion toward them and he healed their sick." What
was it again? Compassion, the compassion of Jesus Christ. Often we look
to ways, I wonder if they're going to lay hands today in church? I wonder is
somebody is going to be delivered? I wonder if they're going to put oil on us?
We come expecting how we're going to be healed. They are all good but we should
be coming to church looking for Jesus' compassion. However he wants to direct
his compassion to you, then you will be set free.

Matthew 20:29, everything will flow through the compassion of Jesus Christ.
"And as they departed from Jericho a great multitude followed him."
Verse 30, "And behold two blind men sitting by the way side, when they
heard that Jesus passed by, cried out saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son
of David."
There's the mercy. Verse 31, "And the multitude rebuked them,
because they should hold their peace; but they cried the more saying, Have mercy
on us, O Lord, thou son of David." They did not stop; they
wanted that healing so bad, they cried out, mercy, compassion. Today, this
morning, if you need a healing in your body, begin to cry out right now for his
mercy and compassion. Cry out. Don't be afraid. I know this is hard. Cry out, be
like that blind man, have mercy and compassion on me. Jesus have mercy on me.
And when someone tells you to be quite, say no, I'm crying out for his
mercy. I'm crying out for his compassion. That's hard to do. You have to learn
how to cry out. And it says they were in a multitude of people when they cried
out. That meant what? When they cried out every eye was on them. Jesus knows how
to get his eyes of people on you. When they were all looking, when their eyes
were upon them, look what happened. Verse 31, "...but they cried
the more saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son of David." Verse 32,
"And Jesus stood still and called them and said, What will ye that I shall
do unto you?" Verse 33, "They say unto him, Lord, that our eyes may be
opened." Verse 34, "So Jesus had compassion on them and touched their
eyes; and immediately their eyes received sight and they followed him."
After they had done everything on their behalf, then the compassion of Jesus
flowed to them. The compassion of Jesus Christ flowed.

I'll give you one more example. Matthew 9:35
"And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their
synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing every sickness
and every disease among the people." Verse 36, "But when he saw the
multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were
scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd." Verse 37, "Then sayit
he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are
few." Verse 38, "Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he
will send forth labourers into his harvest." In other words,
the work was too big for Jesus. There wasn't enough of Jesus. So he took his
twelve first and he anointed them and they went out and started to lay hands and
teach and preach how you could be healed. Then after the twelve he got 70 more,
and that wasn't enough. So when Jesus died, he prepared you because the anointed
one and his anointing abides within you. The only way Jesus can get this message
of healing out is that you cannot be afraid to preach it. And we're afraid to
preach it because we are afraid of what people will think of us when we lay
hands on somebody and they don't immediately get out of the wheelchair or don't
immediately walk. So we back off from it. You can't back off. You can't stop
laying hands on people who are sick. Because the moment you stop laying hands on
people who are sick, the compassion of Jesus will stop. I don't care if that
person walks into this church Sunday after Sunday and you lay hands on them and
nothing happens, and nothing happens, you don't stop laying hands on them.
Because the moment you stop, the compassion of Jesus will stop. You have the
anointing that God placed on each one of his disciples and each one of the 70.
That same anointing abides in you. I know it's very hard when you lay hands on
someone and you don't see those results right away. It's very hard. But you
can't lose faith and stop. You have to go back to what the scriptures say; Lay
hands on the sick and they will recover. You can't give up. Your job is to
lay hands with faith believing, Godís job is to heal. Youíre the vehicle God
is going to use.

Matthew 10:8, "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast
out devils; freely ye have received, freely give." Now the
reason we are preaching this and I know you don't see it. You're saying, How are
all these multitudes of people going to come into this church? That's the number
one question that everybody has. Not only in this church but other churches as
well. Many churches are empty today. I don't know how they will come in but he's
going to need each and every one of you to lay hands when the multitudes do.
There is a great desire in everybody to lay hands and this is good but it's
going to come to a point where you are going to get tired of laying hands
because the needs of the people will be so great. The compassion of Jesus is
going to be poured out on this world as never before and he's going to need each
one of us.

Will you be ready and willing?

December 3

SEVEN REDEMPTIVE NAMES OF GOD

JEHOVAH JIREH

Today we're going to talk about God our Provider. Why should
we expect the provisions for our lives be made? All provisions have to come to
you because of the offering Abraham made up to God. If he did not make that
offering, provisions to you could not come. If you understand this teaching
today, you'll begin to see why provisions have to come into your life.
It's not maybe; you don't have to wait until somebody blesses you.
Provisions have to come to you because you're a Christian. Romans 9:29,
"And as Esaias said before, Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed,
we had been as Sodom and been made like unto Gomorrah" The seed
is what we are going to follow today. We're going to show you how it can grow in
your life. Some of us will have to change our attitude. But when you
change your attitude, the seed is going to begin to produce much in your life.
In other words, you would be like ashes. Keep in mind that the seed is Jesus
Christ. Genesis 3:15 - This is the first prophesy that God
makes in the bible. "And I will put enmity (hostility) between
thee (Satan) and the woman, and between thy seed (Satan's seed) and her seed
(Jesus Christ); it (Jesus )shall bruise thy head, and thou (Satan) shalt bruise
his heel." This is why there is so much hostility between
races. The woman has a physical seed; a man has a physical seed. But this is not
what God is talking about. He said the woman would have a seed and the seed is
Jesus Christ. It's not the woman's seed to reproduce. It's the seed that she
will bring into this earth that will bring you every provision you need.

What we are going to do today is to follow this seed. It took
a mastermind like God to keep this seed in the earth for 4,000 years and Satan
could not touch him. Today, God is looking for people that he can trust to carry
his seed and carry his word to the people of today that need it and to this dark
world. What God did from the beginning of time, was that he always had somebody
he could trust, who would be obedient to him. And today there is no change. He
is looking for that somebody to be obedient to him. God found Noah. Noah would
be the righteous one who would carry the seed. Out of millions of people, only
eight people ended up on this earth because of one man. Because God knew that
Noah would carry that seed through. After Noah, God had to find somebody else.
In Genesis 12 we will begin to study the life of Abraham. It takes time to
develop and mold us. We all have to become that clay thatís pliable, and we
have to become obedient to him. Now everybody has to be called and separated. If
you are not called and separated, your work will never last. When we are born
again, we are all called, but then there's a separation of everyone of us to do
something. And you have to find out what it is that you are separated to. What
is God calling you to do. And the way God worked it with Abraham is the way he
will work it with you today. Genesis 12:1, "Now the Lord had said
unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy
father's house, unto a land that I will show you." Many of us
wonít do anything because you're afraid of losing your family. That's a hard
statement but that's the way it is. You don't want to offend anybody in your
family. You are afraid to step out because you won't have your family behind
you. But if you are going to do God's work, he is going to take you out of your
family and away from your friends. And nobody wants to leave their family or
lose their friends. And that's why man hesitates to step out and do the work
that God has called him to do. But he told Abraham he was calling him out of a
place where there was nothing but witchcraft, occult, drinking. There was no
good thing in the city where Abraham was living. God is going to move upon some
of you to get out from where you are, to get out of your comfort zone and begin
to do something for Jesus. He doesn't want you to sit in this church any longer.
He wants you to get outside of those gates and begin to bring the people in. And
he said, Abraham I have a plan for you and I will bless you if you will do it.
Verse 2, "And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee,
and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing." You are
living in a great nation and you have been blessed because you live in one of
the greatest nations in the world. You don't have to worry about making a name
for yourself. God will make the name but it will be the name that God wants you
to be. You could be the concealed one but you could be doing to the greatest
work for God that anybody has ever done. You don't have to worry about what man
is thinking about you or what man is saying about you, you only have to be
concerned about what God is going to do in your life, because your ultimate
destination is heaven and that's all you have to be concerned about. You don't
have to be concerned about what man is saying about you or what you're going to
do on this earth. Let God worry about that. Let Him work and He will bless you.
When he blesses you, then you will be a blessing to others. These are God's
promises. When God calls and separates you, he will give you a promise. Verse
4, "So Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him; and Lot went with
him; and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran."
How many of you are ready to depart from your family and friends and
do God's work? What is God looking for? Obedience. People will say, Pastor, I'm
retired and I'm too old. Abram was 75 years old and he was just starting. Bob
Bosworth wrote "Christ for the Nations" and ministered for 55 years
but he said his ministry started at the age of 75 and he had the greatest
ministry in his later years then all he had in his beginning years. So age is no
barrier.

Verse 7, "And the Lord appeared unto Abram and said, Unto
thy seed will I give this land; and there builded he an altar unto the Lord, who
appeared unto him." We will see that
Abraham had no seed. He had nobody. Genesis 15:4, "And behold, the
word of the Lord came unto him saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that
shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir." God
promised Abraham a seed. Today God will give everyone of you a seed to plant if
you're in trouble. Because the seed principle is what he's trying to show. How
he developed Abraham is how he wants to develop you. Verse 6, "And
he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness."
This is the same as you being born again. This is where the Jewish culture
started here in this verse. It started here because of faith. In verses 9
through 17, God is saying to Abraham that he will make a covenant with him. The
shedding of blood will be the beginning of the covenant God made with Abraham.
Verse 18, "In the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram saying, Unto
thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river,
the river Euphrates." Now Abraham still has no seed here.
Genesis 17 is where the covenant is renewed. The promises have been made, a
covenant was established but it took 24 years to renew the covenant. Why do you
think it took that long? Many of you have received prophecies but they haven't
come to pass yet. God has to see your obedience. But he also knows there is
timing when you will be ready. Faith and patience will inherit the promises. The
faith and patience of Abraham received the promise that God said. If you are
going to let go of what God prophesied over you, it will not come to pass. Faith
and patience will inherit the promises of whatever God said. Verse 1,
"And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram
and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me and be thou
perfect." At 99 Abraham is starting out again. So you see age
has nothing to do with it. God is going to use you no matter how old you are.
Verse 2, "And I will make my covenant between me and thee and will multiply
thee exceedingly." Verse 3, "And Abram fell on his face; and God
talked with him saying." Verse 4, "As for me, behold, my covenant is
with thee, and thou shall be a father of many nations." 24
years have gone by and he still doesn't have a son. Verse 5,
"Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be
Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee." Verse 6, "And
I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings
shall come out of thee." Verse 7, "And I will establish my covenant
between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an
everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee and to thy seed after thee." God
made a covenant between God and Jesus and Abraham. The covenant that was made in
this verse was made between God and Jesus and he took a human being (Abraham)
that would be a channel in this earth to carry that seed all the way through.
God asked Abraham to shed some of his blood so that the covenant could be
consummated. Verse 10, "This is my covenant, which ye shall keep
between me and you and thy seed after thee; every man child among you shall be
circumcised." Verse 11, "And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your
foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you."
This covenant would have to be proved. Read chapters 18-21. Finally Isaac was
born. Genesis 22:1, "And it came to pass after these things, that
God did tempt (proved) Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham and he said, Behold,
here I am." The seed could have been lost if Abraham killed his
son. But he told God he would do it. Verse 7, "And Isaac spoke
unto Abraham his father, and said, My father and he said, Here am I, my son. And
he said, behold the fire and the wood; but where is the lamb for a burnt
offering?" Here is one of the most prophetic statements in the
whole bible. Verse 8, "And Abraham said, My son, God will provide
himself a lamb for a burnt offering; so they went both of them together."
The lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. In the beginning
was the word and the word was with God and the word was God. Verse 14,
"And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah Jireh; as it is said to
this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen." You have a covenant
with our Lord Jesus Christ and there isn't anything other than Satan that will
stop it or delay it. Now Satan has done a good job in delaying your benefits in
life. And you're going to have to start to attack him as never before to get
those benefits released into your household. Verse 15, "And the
angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time." Verse
16, "And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou
hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son." Verse
17, "That in blessing I will bless thee and in multiplying I will multiply
thy seed as the stars of theheaven, and as the sand which
is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies."
Notice "seed" is not plural; it is singular. You are part of that seed
that was multiplied today. Everytime somebody becomes born again, they become
seeds of the seed. Verse 18, "And in thy seed shall all the
nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice." All
of the nations of the earth shall be blessed. Everybody is going to be blessed.
But not everybody is blessed in this world. Not every nation is blessed in this
world. Because of one man, you can have the blessings of Abraham on your life.
In Deuteronomy 28, verse 3-10 you can read about the
blessings. Because of what his seed did for you, you are entitled to everything
that Abraham ever had. You and I are Abraham's seed. But we have to begin to
fight and get the blessings that the devil has stolen from us. The blessings
belong to you.

Galatians 3:14, "That the blessing of Abraham might come
on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the
Spirit through faith." Verse 15, "Brethren, I speak after the manner
of men; Though it be but a man's covenant, yet if it be confirmed no man
disannulleth or addeth thereto." Verse 16, "Now to Abraham and his
seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seed as of many; but as of
one, And to thy seed, which is Christ." Verse 29, "And if ye be
Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." This
is proof of the Abrahamic covenant. Everything that you have lost in life has
been because Satan has stolen it from you. And you have to find out why is he
stealing it from you. Where is the open door? You have to ask yourself,
have you been obedient to God in every area. Have you been obedient to tithe? If
you don't tithe, you're not going to be blessed. It's as simple as that. You say
you don't have any money. Well you don't have any money
because you don't tithe. It's very simple. You say, why am I sick? Because you
don't claim the healing scriptures. You've lost your faith. We're all in the
same boat.